The invention generally relates to a system and method to seal by bringing the wall of a subterranean wellbore into sealing contact with an interior tubing. More specifically, the invention relates to a sealing system that causes the wall of a wellbore to collapse or swell and thereby provide a seal against a tubing located within the wellbore.
Sealing systems, such as packers or anchors, are commonly used in the oilfield. Packers, for instance, are used to seal the annular space between a tubing string and a surface exterior to the tubing string, such as a casing or an open wellbore. Commonly, packers are actuated by hydraulic pressure transmitted either through the tubing bore, annulus, or a control line. Other packers are actuated via an electric line deployed from the surface of the wellbore.
The majority of packers are constructed so that when actuated they provide a seal in a substantially circular geometry. However, in an open wellbore, packers are required to seal in a geometry that is typically not substantially circular.
Thus, there is a continuing need to address one or more of the problems stated above.